"What's going on with all these old people?" Little Bear wondered, watching the elderly figures on the screen.
Aren't the people of Xianzhou supposed to be Long-Life Species? How come there are so many old folks?
And what they were wearing... Cloud Knight armor?
Hearing Little Bear's confusion, the armchair detectives in the live stream flooded the Comment Section with their theories:
[During the Closed Beta storyline, we encountered Mara-Struck soldiers here. Could there be a connection between the old people and the Mara-Struck?]
[Case closed! These old people are just the Mara-Struck soldiers after being "cured."]
[I get it! Lumina arrived here before us and transformed all the Mara-Struck into these old people...]
[Lumina! You still insist you're not Yaoshi?]
"Could Lumina really be Yaoshi herself? Or perhaps a clone?" Little Bear mused, finding the explanations in the Comment Section quite plausible.
But a moment later, a fundamental inequality flashed in his mind:
Lumina's ability to revert Mara-Struck ≠ Lumina being the true Yaoshi.
Oof... The great inequality instantly demolished that theory.
With that, Little Bear stopped pondering the matter. Whether Lumina was Yaoshi or not would be revealed later in the story.
He resumed controlling his game character, following the mission guide to continue the storyline.
Having encountered no monsters along the way, the group quickly reached the main gate.
"Um... Sister Lumina, with so many of us just walking out like this, is that really okay?" Qingque asked, her throat tightening as she eyed the imposing gate.
After all, she and Lumina had snuck in secretly. If they were caught, Lumina would probably be fine, but Qingque would be in serious trouble. She'd likely end up getting a face full of spit from her Master Diviner.
"What could possibly be the problem?" Lumina retorted, her tone dismissive. "We walked in openly, not secretly. So why would walking out openly be any different?"
"Uh... I guess you're right," Qingque mumbled, suddenly understanding Lumina's point.
"Hmm~" Lumina nodded in satisfaction, observing Qingque's expression. Not bad. Qingque isn't quite as clueless as I thought. Compared to March 7th, she's... maybe a June 10th? ♪
Lumina glanced at the group of elderly men floating behind her, then at the Cloud Knights standing beside Tingyun. She repeated her earlier statement:
"The Mara-Struck symptoms of these Cloud Knights have been completely resolved."
"Compared to succumbing to Mara and being killed by their comrades, wouldn't removing the Blessing and leaving them with intact bodies be preferable?"
"Find a place to bury them."
Lumina gathered the elderly men into a floating sphere and handed the tether to the Cloud Knights.
After exchanging glances, the two Cloud Knights accepted the tether, clasped their fists in gratitude, and nodded.
With a brief acknowledgement, they led the lifeless group toward the Cloud Knight Camp.
"Miss Lumina, you can actually cure the Mara-Struck condition?"
The well-informed Welt naturally understood what the Mara-Struck condition was and its implications for the Xianzhou Alliance. That Lumina could eradicate this affliction, which had baffled even the Alliance itself, left him utterly astonished.
Hearing Welt's incredulous words, Lumina smiled faintly and explained:
"Rather than saying we're curing the Mara-Struck, I think we're actually removing the Blessing within them."
"The Mara-Struck originate from Yaoshi's Blessing. If we remove the Blessing, the Mara-Struck condition naturally disappears."
"Of course, that also means they lose their Long-Life."
Welt: ...
Hearing this, Welt couldn't tell if Lumina was being modest or not.
If one could remove Yaoshi's Blessing while preserving Long-Life...
Unless Lumina was the Aeon of Abundance herself, Welt wouldn't believe it.
But... how could an Emanator of Abundance remove the blessings bestowed by Abundance itself?
This question left Welt deeply puzzled.
"Alright, the exit is right ahead."
"Let's board the Starskiff and leave this place. We can chat more leisurely once we reach the Central Starskiff Haven."
Lumina gestured toward the distant gate and addressed the group.
Everyone nodded in agreement.
Following closely behind Lumina, they openly departed from Cloudford...
[Confirmed, everyone! Lumina is definitely the Aeon of Abundance!]
[Lumina and the Aeon of Abundance have never been seen in the same place at the same time. Therefore, Lumina = the Aeon of Abundance! Clap if you understand!]
[Holy shit, how can your own boss bestow a blessing on someone, and you, as their subordinate, just erase it? Isn't that ironclad proof she's the Aeon of Abundance?]
[Wait a minute... I just thought of something... What if Lumina is actually the real final boss...?]
[That's terrifying if you think about it too much...]
"Can you guys stop with the wild theories already...?" Little Bear blurted out, staring at the comment section.
If they kept going, they might even claim Lumina created all the Aeons!
Lumina's ability to dispel Mara-Struck status didn't prove anything. Besides...
"The Aeon of The Hunt isn't some pushover, you know."
"If Lumina were the Aeon of Abundance, The Hunt would have shot her down the moment she stepped into their territory."
[True, true (nodding)]
[Now that you mention it, that actually makes sense.]
[Uh... Is there any chance... the Aeon of The Hunt is also Lumina?]
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Everyone collectively typed out question marks in response to the comment...